Arts and Culture

MPR News has you covered with news and stories about local art and culture happenings across Minnesota.

Art Hounds: Art Hounds are members of the Minnesota arts community who look beyond their own work to highlight what's exciting in local art. You can explore arts events here, or become an Art Hound today.

Art Reviews: Our arts team offers insight on the latest in theater, music, visual arts and more. We explore the breadth of creativity and innovation found throughout Minnesota, offering audiences a deeper understanding of the works and artists shaping our cultural landscape. Read more here.

Art Friend: Everyone needs an art friend. Art Friend is a new segment with our arts team. Art spaces can feel exclusive and art can be confusing, obtuse, and even boring. But, especially with the right context, everyone can be a critic. So let us be your guide- your Art Friend. Listen or read Art Friend stories here.

Our arts coverage is made possible in part by the Minnesota Legacy Amendment's Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund.

Chastity Brown talks music and songwriting in the aftermath of George Floyd's murder
Minneapolis-based musician Chastity Brown has been called a storyteller. Our sister station, The Current, said, “She uses her voice, harmonica, guitar, and words to set your heartbeat at the right pace. And when she's performing, it all feels right.” They describe her music as “soul and jazz tinged folk.”
'Gentrifier' crafts a narrative about Detroit in darkly comic vignettes
Culture critic Anne Elizabeth Moore's project is also an investigation of the costs — monetary, psychological, ethical — of the free house she was given for writing, and an ode to her neighbors.
Renaissance Festival manager faces new sexual assault charges
Scott County prosecutors have re-filed sexual assault charges against a former Renaissance Festival manager. Authorities dropped the case a year ago after the alleged victim said she was unable to testify.
Billy Porter makes peace with himself: 'I set myself free, honey. No more secrets'
Fourteen years after his initial diagnosis, the Pose actor revealed publicly that he is HIV-positive. Porter says being open about his health status felt like a rebirth. His new memoir is “Unprotected.”
History Theatre play 'Not in Our Neighborhood' shines light on a dark St. Paul story
In the 1920s, a Black couple tried to buy their dream home in an all-white neighborhood in St. Paul. They were not welcomed, but intimidated, harassed and threatened. Their story is being told on stage at the History Theatre in St. Paul through Oct. 24.
This book of poetry says, 'I have fists,' and the world needs to know
Chinese American poet Jane Wong's new collection, “How Not to Be Afraid of Everything,” grapples with fear and anger at her family's silence about what they suffered in China's Great Leap Forward.
Jane Goodall encourages all to act to save Earth in 'The Book of Hope'
The primatologist says it's crucial that young people know how positive action can still shift the frightening trajectories of climate crisis, biodiversity loss and the ongoing global pandemic.
She barely made it out of Kabul. Now she's welcoming Afghans with a familiar meal.
A restaurant in Washington, D.C., is offering donated welcome meals of traditional food to newly arriving Afghans. The chef cooking those meals knows what it's like to leave home and family behind.
Ask a Bookseller: A unique murder mystery
Leading up to Halloween, Jordyn Stocks of Piragis Northwoods Company in Ely, Minn., recommended the mystery novel “The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle” by Stuart Turton.